Melting and distributing device for printer&#39;s metal



D. E. SUTTON Oct. 9, 1962 MELTING AND DISTRIBUTING DEVICE FOR PRINTERS METAL 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 5, 1960 HI l 14 mt INVENTOR.

DONALD E. SUTTON ATTORNEYS Oct. 9, 1?62 Filed July 5, 1960 D. E. SUTTON 3,057,025

MELTING AND DISTRIBUTING DEVICE FOR PRINTERS METAL 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 01 4 i 7 a L 78 68 q; |os

92 INVENTOR. 88 DONALD E. SUTTON BY 1 84 89 97 96 94 6] Z 2% ATTORNEYS United States Patent Office 3,957,025 Patented Oct. 9, 1962 MELTING AND DETRIZBUTING DEVICE FOR Donald E. Sutton, Cornstcclk Township, Kalamazoo County, Mich, assignor to Hammond Machinery Builders, Inc., Kalamazoo, Mich, a corporation of Michigan Filed July 5, 1960, Ser. No. 40,725 9 Claims. (Cl. 2279) This invention relates in general to apparatus for melting and casting moldable materials and, more particularly, it relates to a device adapted for use in the printing trade for melting or re-melting of printers metal, usually consisting of an alloy of lead, tin and antimony, and forming same into ingots, usually termed pigs in the trade, which are then used to supply line-casting machines.

The need for, and operation of, combined melting and casting devices are common knowledge in many different fields, and particularly where moldable materials are used, recovered and then used again in frequently repeated cycles. However, the circumstances giving rise to this invention developed out of the use of this type of apparatus in the printing trade. Accordingly, for convenience in illustration, the invention will be disclosed in terms characteristic to the printing trade. However, it will be understood that such specific reference is utilized for illustrative purposes only and is not intended to limit in any way the scope of the invention.

Printing shops which have their own line-casting machines necessarily have available apparatus for re-melting the metal previously used for casting slugs in such linecasting machines. Such metal is then remolded into pigs of proper size and shape for re-use.

Existing devices for such re-melting of the metal require an undesirable amount of floor space because the pouring spout and the pig mold are arranged alongside of the melting portion of the apparatus. Further, this arrangement of the mold and pouring spout places the molten metal in the open and therefore adjacent personnel are subject to possible contact with it while it is in a hot state and it further subjects at least the mold to the possibility of being struck by persons or equipment moving around the adjacent area.

Accordingly, the primary object of this invention is the provision of an improved and compact device for melting, pouring and remolding a moldable material, such as printers metal, which device will occupy a minimum of floor space.

A further object of the invention has been the provision of an apparatus, are aforesaid, in which the likelihood of the mold being struck by persons and/or equipment moving around the area adjacent thereto is minimized.

A further object of the invention has been the provision of an apparatus, as aforesaid, in which protection is providcd against the danger of adjacent personnel contacting the metal while the metal is in a hot condition.

A further object of this invention has been the provision of apparatus, as aforesaid, in which the pouring spout and mold are located directly below the melting pot and the mechanism for distributing the molten material into the mold cavities is closely adjacent to the mold cavities; and wherein the distributing mechanism is arranged so that, in spite of its proximity to the mold, it is automatically moved away from a point of interference with the mold in response to rotation of the mold, such rotation occurring for the purpose of discharging hardened material from the mold cavities.

A further object of this invention has been the provision of apparatus, as aforesaid, which is virtually foolproof to operate, which is safer to operate than apparatusv presently known for the same or similar purposes, which is pleasing in appearance, which is sturdy in construction and which requires a minimum of maintenance.

Other objects and purposes of this invention will become apparent to persons familiar with this type of equipment upon reading the following descriptive material and examining the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a melting and molding device embodying the invention.

FIGURE 2 is an end elevational view of the device appearing in FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a broken sectional view taken along the line IIIIII in FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view taken along the line IV-IV in FIGURE 3 with the parts thereof in different operating positions.

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view taken along the line VV in FIGURE 3.

FIGURE 6 is a sectional view taken along the line Vl-VI in FIGURE 5 with the spout thereof in a different operating position.

FIGURE 7 is a sectional view taken along the line VII-VII in FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 8 is a fragment of FIGURE 5 showing an alternate construction.

For convenience in description, the terms upper, lower and words of similar import will have reference to a machine embodying the invention in its normal position of operation, as shown in FIGURES 1 and 2. The terms inner, and outer and derivatives thereof will have reference to the geometric center of said machine and parts thereof.

General Description The objects and purposes of the invention, including those set forth above, have been met by providing melting and molding apparatus having an upright frame upon the upper end of which a melting pot is supported. A mold having a plurality of mold cavities therein is sup ported upon the frame directly below the melting pot for rotation around an axis parallel with and midway between said opposite sides of the mold. A distribution assembly is mounted upon and communicates with the melting pot through the bottom thereof. Said distribution assembly includes a discharge spout and manually operable means for directing said spout into any of the mold cavities when said cavities are in an upwardly facing, molding position.

Releasable holding means are provided on the frame for retaining th mold in a molding position wherein at least some of the mold cavities are in position for receiving molten material. The discharge spout is mounted and arranged so that it is automatically moved out of a position of interference with the rotational movement of the mold for the purpose of discharging the molded materials from the mold. The manual device for positioning the discharge spout also operates valve means for controlling the flow of molten material through the spout.

Detailed Construction The apparatus It) (FIGURES 1 and 2), which has been selected to illustrate a preferred embodiment of the invention, is comprised of a support or base frame 11 including upright legs 12, 13, 14 and 15 upon the upper ends of which is supported the melting pot housing 17 in which the melting pct 18 (FIGURE 3) is housed and supported. The housing 17 has a top wall 19 with a removable cover 22 at one end and an exhaust duct connection 21 near the other end. Heat-producing means, such as the gas burner tubes 23 are supported adjacent to the bottom 24 of the melting pot 18 by means such as the hangers 26.

The base frame 11 (FIGURE 1) includes a pair-of crossbars 27 and 28 which extend between the legs 12 and 13, and 14 and 15, respectively, and are secured thereto, as by welding. A base plate 29 is supported upon and extends between the crossbars 27 and 28. A pair of end plates 32 and 33 are supported upon and extend upwardly from the crossbars 27 and 28, respectively, at opposite ends of the base plate 29. The upper ends of the end plates 32 and 33 are interconnected and held against relative movement by the spaced, parallel tie rods 34 and 35 (FIGURE 2). A pair of bearings, one of which is shown at 37, are coaxially supported upon the upper ends of said end plates 32 and 33.

An elongated mold 38 (FIGURES 1 and 2) has a pair of coaxial stub shafts, one of which is shown at 39 extending through the bearing 37, whereby the mold is supported for pivotal movement around a substantially horizontal axis directly below, but spaced from, the melting pot 18. In this particular embodiment, the mold 38 has a plurality of elongated mold cavities 42 and 43 in the two diametrically opposite faces 44 and 45 of said mold, which faces are parallel with, and extend lengthwise of, the rotational axis of the mold.

A detent rod 47 (FIGURES 2 and which is secured to that end of the mold 38 adjacent the plate 32, extends substantially parallel with the rotational axis of the mold and is spaced radially therefrom. A pair of arms 48 and 49, which have hook portions 58 and 51 near their upper ends, are pivotally supported near their lower ends upon the end plate 32 so that the hooked portions extend toward each other and are slightly above the upper edge of the end plate 32. Resilient means, such as the spring 52, is connected between the arms 48 and 49 above their pivot axes whereby said hooks are urged toward each other. Stop pins 53 and 54 are mounted upon the end plate 32 for engagement by the opposing edges of the arms 48 and 49 in response to the urging of the spring 52, whereby said arms 48 and 49 normally extend substantially vertically upwardly from their pivot axes.

The upper, opposing edges 56 and 57 of the hook portions 58 and 51 (FIGURE 2) slope downwardly toward each other so that one thereof is always engageable by the detent rod 47 when it is moved downwardly in response to rotation of the mold toward a locked position between the upper edge of the end plate 32 and one of the hook portions 50 and 51. Release of the detent rod 47 from engagement by one of the hook portions 50 and 51 is effected by movement of its arm away from the respective stop pin 53 or 54. When the detent rod 47 is disposed between the hook portion 50 and the end plate 32, the mold face 44 is in a horizontal position on top of the mold. When the detent rod 47 is disposed between the other hook portion 51 and the end plate 32 the mold face 45 is in the top horizontal position.

The distribution assembly 60 (FIGURES 3 and 7) includes a discharge pipe 61 having a mounting flange 62 at its upper end secured in any convenient manner to the bottom 24 of the melting pot 18. The discharge pipe 61 has a central, vertical opening 63 which communicates at its upper end with an opening 64 in said bottom 24 and has a valve seat 66 at the lower end thereof. The discharge pipe 61 extends downwardly preferably toward the rotational axis of the mold 38.

The distribution assembly (FIGURE 7) also includes a swivel bracket 67 having a pair of spaced, substantially parallel swivel arms 68 and 69, which have axially aligned swivel openings 72 and 73 through which the lower end of the discharge pipe 61 is slidably and rotatably received. A thrust collar 74 is releasably affixed to the discharge pipe 61 between the swivel arms 68 and 69, whereby undesirable axial movement of the swivel bracket 67 with respect to the discharge pipe 61 is positively prevented without obstructing the rotational movement of the swivel bracket 67.

The swivel bracket 67 has a downwardly extending hinge flange 76 and an outwardly extending control flange 77 which preferably, but not necessarily, extend substan tially at right angles to each other from one end of the arm 69. The yoke 78 has a pair of substantially parallel, spaced pivot arms 81 and 82 (FIGURE 5) which are pivotally supported between their respective ends upon the opposite sides of the hinge flange 76 by means of the hinge pin 83. Portions of the pivot arms 81 and 82 extend past, and are spaced outwardly from the opposite sides of, the discharge pipe 61.

A discharge spout 84 (FIGURE 7) has a swivel head 86 at one end thereof with a swivel opening 87 into which the lower end of the discharge pipe 61 is slidably and rotatably received. The spout 84 includes a sidewardly and downwardly curving trough 88 with a bottom 89 and a pair of side walls 92 and 93. The swivel head 86 has a chamber 94 which communicates between the trough 88 and the lower end of the swivel opening 8'7. The bottom 96 of the swivel head 86 has in its upper surface a recess 97 which is axially aligned with the swivel opening 87. A valve ball 98 is disposed in the recess 97 so that it is aligned and engageable with the valve seat 66 at the lower end of the discharge pipe 61.

The swivel head 86 (FIGURE 5) has a pair of horizontally elongated pin openings 99 and 188 into which pins 101 and 182 are slidably received. Said pins 101 and 182 are secured to the pivot arms 81 and 82 on the yoke 78 so that pivotal movement of the yoke 78 around the hinge pin 83 (FIGURE 3) causes the spout 84- to move upwardly and downwardly with respect to the discharge pipe 61. A valve adjustment screw 103 threadedly extends through the closed end 106 of the yoke 78 for engagement with the lower side of the control flange 77 on the bracket 67 (FIGURE 3). The lock nut 197 (FIGURE 7) is provided on the adjustment screw 183 for holding said screw against accidental movement with respect to the yoke 78. Resilient means, such as the springs 188 and 189 (FIGURE 5) are held under compression between the yoke 78 and the control flange 77 for urging the end 186 away from the control flange 77, whereby the spout 84 is urged upwardly toward the melting pot 18 and, as a result, the valve ball 98 is held in the valve seat 66.

A rod 112 (FIGURES 3 and 5) is secured at one end thereof to the end 186 of the yoke 78 and extends away therefrom in the opposite direction from the pipe 61. The outer end of the rod 112 has a handle 113 secured thereto.

The end wall 114 of the melting pot housing 17 (FIG- URES 1 and 2) has a downwardly extending skirt 116 with a plurality of upwardly extending notches 117 in its lower edge into which the control rod 112 is slidably receivable when manually urged. In this particular embodiment, where there are four mold cavities 42 and 43 in each of the mold faces 44 and 45, respectively, there are four notches 117. Each notch 117 is arranged to receive the rod 112 when the remote end of the trough 88 is located directly over a respectively corresponding one of said mold cavities.

As indicated in broken lines at 88a in FIGURE 3, the spout 84 may be arranged so that the lower end of the trough 88 extends slightly into one of the cavities 42 or 43 when the valve ball 98 is unseated and, accordingly, the molten material is able to flow down through the trough 88. The downward extension of the skirt 116 is preferably such that the handle 113 must be moved above the lower edge of the skirt, as into one of the notches 117, in order to unseat the valve 98 so that any appreciable amount of metal will flow into the trough 88.

In order to facilitate the collection of the molded material from the mold 38, a pair of guide strips 119 and 120 are secured within the base frame 111 so that they pass under the mold 38 and beyond the edge of the base plate 29 for guiding the castings, shown in broken lines at 121, into the container shown in broken lines at 123.

In order to assure a continuous molten condition of the lead from the melting pot 18 to the mold 38, a spout heater 124 is curved under the swivel head portion 86 of the spout 84 so that a fiame can be directed against the bottom walls 89 and 96 of the trough 88 and swivel head 86.

Operation The apparatus is operated by raising the cover 22, placing the moldable material, such as printers metal, into said melting pot 18 and then causing the burners 23 (FIGURE 3) to generate the heat which melts the printers metal in the melting pot 18. Removal of the melted printers metal from the melting pot is accomplished easily and quickly by grasping the handle 113 and rotating the spout 84 around the axis of the discharge pipe 61 until the rod 112 is aligned with one of the notches 117, which corresponds to the particular mold cavity 42 or 43 into which it is desired to have the molten lead flow. The handle 113 is then raised, whereby the spout 84 is moved downwardly by the yoke 78 away from the swivel bracket 67. Such movement of the spout 84 permits the valve ball 98 to move downwardly away from the valve seat 66 so that molten printers metal can fiow down through the discharge pipe 61, out through the chamber 94 and thence along the trough 88 into the appropriate cavity in the mold 38. When the mold cavity, such as the cavity 42 (FIGURE 3), has been filled, the handle 113 is merely released whereby the spiral springs 108 and 109 immediately force the adjacent end of the yoke 78, to which the handle 113 is secured, downwardly, thereby urging the spout 84 upwardly and seating the valve ball 98 against the valve seat 66 whereby the flow of molten material through the pipe 61 is stopped.

In a similar manner, the spout 84 can now be redirected by appropriate movement of the handle 113 to a position above another mold cavity after which the handle 113 is moved upwardly into the appropriate notch 113 to release molten lead into such cavity until it is filled. This procedure is continued until all of the mold cavities are filled or the molten metal has been drained from the melting pot 18 After the molten printers metal has been allowed to cool and set in the mold 38 (FIGURE 1), it can be easily and quickly removed simply by rotating the mold around the axis of the stub shaft 39 through an angle of approximately 180 degrees, whereby the pigs 121 within the mold cavities are caused by gravity to fall upon the guide strips 119 and 120, and slide into the container 123, where they are stored for use.

As shown in FIGURE 2, rotation of the mold 38 can be quickly effected by manually engaging the upper end of that arm, such as the arm 48 whose hook portion 50 is engaging the rod 47, and then moving it away from the rotational axis of the mold. The mold 18 can now be rotated through 180 degrees as the detent rod 47 first moves upwardly past the hook 50 and then slides downwardly along the cam edge 57 of the hook portion 51 until said rod 47 engages the end plate 32. The hook portion 51 can now move over the rod 47, under the urging of the spring 52, and thereby hold the mold against accidental rotation. By moving the rod 47 from its position of engagement with the hook 50 to engagement by the hook 51, the relative positions of the mold cavities 42 and 43 are reversed.

If the outer and lower end of the spout 84 has not been moved sidewardly, as appearing in FIGURE 4, prior to rotation of the mold, the spout is in most instances moved out of the way of the mold as it is rotated. That is, as the mold is rotated, it engages the outer and lower end of the spout 84, as shown (FIGURE 4) in broken lines at 38a and 84a, respectively, whereby the spout is pivoted around the pipe 61 to permit the rotation of the mold. This automatic pivoting of the spout 84 by the mold 38 during the rotation of the mold is best achieved if the spout is not pivoted or pointed against the direction of rotation of the mold. Accordingly, it may be desirable, as shown in FIGURE 8, to provide a pair of spiral springs 127 and 128 which are secured to opposite sides of the yoke 78 near the web 106 thereof and extend in exactly opposite directions therefrom so that the outer ends thereof can be secured to posts 129 and 130, which are secured to and extend inwardly from the end wall 114 of the melting pot housing 17. By this means, the spout 84 will always be urged back into a central position directly above the middle of the mold 38 whenever the handle 113 is released from manual engagement. Accordingly, the at-rest position of the spout 84 will always be such that it will not prevent or obstruct rotation of the mold in either rotational direction.

Although a particular preferred embodiment of the invention has been disclosed above for illustrative purposes, it will be understood that modifications or variations of such disclosure, which lie within the scope of the appended claims, are fully contemplated.

What is claimed is:

1. A melting and molding device, comprising: a base frame having'a crucible supported thereon; a mold having a cavity in one face thereof, said mold being spaced vertically from and being located directly below said crucible; means supporting said mold upon said base frame for rotation around a substantially horizontal axis parallel with said face, whereby said cavity is movable between upwardly and downwardly opening positions; an outlet conduit communicating with said crucible and extending downwardly toward said mold; a spout supported upon said conduit adjacent the lower end thereof and communicating with said conduit, said spout extending into the space between said crucible and said mold, said spout being movable substantially horizontally with respect to said conduit into and out of a position for filling said cavity when said cavity is in its upwardly opening position; means suporting said spout for vertical movement with respect to said conduit; valve means for closing said conduit in response to vertical movement of said spout with respect to said conduit; and means for effecting horizontal and vertical movement of said spout with respect to said conduit.

2. Apparatus for melting and casting moldable material, comprising: an upwardly extending base frame; a melting pot supported upon said base frame adjacent the upper end thereof; an outlet pipe connected to said melting pot and extending downwardly therefrom; a mold having a plurality of mold cavities in one face thereof, said mold being spaced vertically from and being located directly below said melting pot; means supporting said mold upon said base frame below said outlet pipe for rotation around a horizontal axis parallel with said face for movement into and out of a position with said cavities opening upwardly; a spout supported upon and communieating with the lower end of said pipe and extending sidewardly and downwardly therefrom into the space between said melting pot and said mold to a point adjacent said face when said mold is in said position, said spout being pivotable horizontally around said pipe and thereby directable toward said cavities; and valve means associated with said pipe for controlling the flow of molten material into said spout.

3. The structure of claim 2 wherein said mold has two substantially parallel faces on axially opposite sides of and parallel with said axis, and a plurality of mold cavities in each of said faces; and wherein said spout is engaged and pivoted by said mold around said pipe in response to rotation of said mold around said axis.

4. The structure of claim 2 wherein said spout is supported upon said pipe for movement lengthwise thereof toward and away from the lower end thereof; and wherein said valve means includes a valve seat at the lower end of said pipe, a valve ball supported upon said spout adjacent said valve seat and resilient means continuously urging said spout upwardly on said pipe whereby said ball is urged against said valve seat.

5. A machine for melting and molding printers metal comprising: an upwardly extending substantially rectangular base frame; a melting pot supported upon said base frame adjacent the upper end thereof; heating means supported upon said base frame beneath said melting pot; a mold supported upon said base frame directly below and spaced downwardly from said melting pot for rotation around a substantially horizontal axis, said mold having a pair of substantially parallel faces located on opposite sides of and parallel with said axis; means defining a plurality of mold cavities in each of said faces; detent means on said base frame for releasably holding said mold in one of two rotational positions, said faces being substantially horizontal in each :of said rotational positions; an outlet pipe communicating with and extending downwardly from the bottom wall of said melting pot toward said mold; a discharge assembly mounted upon the lower end of said pipe, said discharge assembly including a sidewardly and downwardly extending spout extending into the space between said mold and said melting pot and means supporting said spout for horizontal pivotal movement around the axis of said pipe and for communication with said pipe, the outer end of said spout being movable around said pipe into a position closely adjacent to any of said mold cavities disposed in an upwardly opening position; normally closed valve means associated with said pipe for controlling the fio-w of molten material therethrough in response to movement of said spout lengthwise of said pipe; and a single manually engageable handle for moving said spout horizontally with respect to said outlet pipe and for opening said valve.

6. The structure of claim wherein said discharge assembly includes a bracket rotatably supported upon said pipe near the lower end thereof, said supporting means for said spout including a swivel head vertically slidably received on the lower end of said discharge pipe; a lever device pivotally supported between the ends thereof upon said bracket, said lever being pivotally secured near one end to the upper end of said spout and having said manually engageable handle near the other end; resilient means between said bracket and said lever urging the handle end thereof downwardly; and wherein said valve means includes a valve seat in the lower end of said pipe, a valve ball adjacent to said valve seat and valve ball engaging means on said spout for urging said valve ball against the seat in response to the urging of said resilient means.

7. The structure of claim 5 wherein the spout curves downwardly around a center located near the rotational axis of said mold and its lower end is located closely adjacent the upper surface of the mold; and wherein the axis of said pipe extends through the rotational axis of said mold, said rotational axis being substantially coincident with the lengthwise centerline of said mold.

8. Apparatus for melting and casting moldable material, comprising: a base frame; a melting pot supported on said base frame; an outlet pipe connected to said melting pot and extending downwardly therefrom; a mold supported below said outlet pipe and having a plurality of mold cavities; a spout mounted on the lower end of said outlet pipe for movement in two different directions, one a direction for filling the respective mold cavities; valve means including cooperating valve parts on said spout and said outlet pipe and means for opening and closing said valve in response to movement of said spout in the other direction; and a single handle connected to said spout for selectively moving same in the respective directions.

9. Apparatus according to claim 8 including an upwardly extending universal head on said spout and mounted on the lower end of said outlet pipe for vertical sliding movement; means defining a valve seat at the lower end of said outlet pipe; a valve ball mounted in said universal head for engagement with said valve seat when said head is in its upper position, said valve ball being spaced from said valve seat when said head is in its lower position to permit said material to flow into said spout, said handle being connected for moving said head upwardly and down wardly.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,606,274 Utley Nov. 9, 1926 2,234,528 Jung Mar. 11, 1941 2,263,880 Jung Nov. 25, 1941 2,957,936 Bugge Oct. 25, 1960 

